Polymath Chronicles

Sorry for being incommunicado... Last Monday, after OFFF, I found out that the house was to close Oct. 7 - EEEK!

Correy and I went over to the house on Wednesday, and spent until Saturday mucking it out. We started the trip by stopping by to see Annie, who's training is coming along very nicely, and who will be coming home next week. Since that was later in the afternoon, when we got to the house, we (Correy) made a plan of attack - I can hear Amy snickering...

 My neighbors allowed us to hook into their water via a series of hoses so we could flush toilets and wash hands, etc. Over the next 3 days, with no electricity, we worked from can see to can't see, taking 4 or 5 loads of crap to the dump (I lost count). To put it in perspective, I lived there for 5 years, all but the last one in a lot of pain from very bad knees.  Not much got done... at all. 

After filling the sheep trailer (6 x 10 x 4) with save-able stuff, I arranged to exchange it for Jordan's (Annie's trainer) stock trailer to get the 16' panels home. By the time I got back to Walton with it, it had started raining - a lot. We did the Walton Wet T-shirt contest, loading it up. The house was as clean as we could get it, and my agent had told the buyer's agent since it was considered of no value, we weren't cleaning it thoroughly. We pulled out of Walton at around 5 and reached Prineville at 8:30pm, very tired and somewhat drier than when we started.

Yesterday, a whirlwind run to the valley to:

• get the last load from the house
• drop Kiri and Whoosie off at their new home
• sign papers for the house closing.

The intent was to leave Prineville by 9 am.  I think we got out of the house to take the canopy off my truck, install the stock racks (purpose will be clear later), hitch up the stock trailer to return it, load the ponies at about 9:15. Needless to say, we didn't leave as early as planned.

We got to the valley about 1:15, and delivered Kiri and Whoosie to their new home. I'm glad that I got Kiri from the stockyard where she was bound for slaughter. When it became clear that she was pregnant, I wasn't thrilled, but figured it was a new experience for me, right? Now that Whoosie is 4 months old, Correy started working with both mares (her's is a new mom, too), and Kiri was not at all pleased to be reminded that she needed to be a horse. To be fair, she's probably been shuffled around alot (which I just did, too), so she has probably learned to buffalo people to get her way. To make it clear to her that it's not ok takes physical punishment, and I have a hard time doing that. I've tried being nice, using treats as bribes, but until you physically show her you are the boss, she's not buying it. I don't need to work that hard with a horse.  She's now with a early-20's young woman who, though looking like she's a sweet young thing with firey red hair, takes no shit. They have a 5+ acre pasture that is shared with 7 alpacas, and at least one cow. There is shelter and it will be a very good place. Since the new owner is a friend of Correy's daughter, Brin, I can get updates on her progress.  If nothing else, they will keep them as pasture pets.

We left there and went into Eugene to get lunch (it was 2:30). Since it would not make sense to drive out to Walton just to turn around for my appointment to sign, I called the Escrow officer and made arrangements to go in earlier. After signing (which was kind of fun - she had handled the previous failed escrow), we went out to the house to load up.

There was some wood from 7 trees that the sheep had girdled, already cut and well seasoned, which we took for Correy's wood stove.  This was the purpose of the stock rack - a support for stacking up the wood.  We picked up 4 pallets (one can never have too many on a farm), the two hoses from last weekend, a couple of boards and cut the 20' pvc into roughly 10' lengths. There were also many more canning jars (gold, if you have them) and a bunch of sheep coats.  When we were fully loaded the truck was wallowing. After picking up Brin to give Correy some "daughter time," we picked up the previously filled and parked sheep trailer to bring it home.

After dropping Brin off in Springfield, we headed back up the mountain IN THE RAIN. We went very slowly (max 50 mph) because of the load. It was snowing on the top of Santiam pass, but just barely starting to stick on the side (the road was just wet). Once over the top and out of the clouds, we could see stars - a welcome sight.

We pulled in at 10:30 - exhausted, wobbly and ready for bed. This is what we hauled back over the mountain. 
Note the tires...
Thursday, I just wanted to veg, but I had 2 traffic plans to do by Friday, the truck and trailer to unload, and 2 loads of laundry to do! And Correy and I dragged our sorry sore butts to Yoga. After Yoga, I became a veg. To make up for it, I worked until midnight on traffic control plans (just one more plan...), and then was too tired to sleep.

The buyer of the house was supposed to be signing Thursday, with funding and closing Friday. She didn't. I lost it... She decided she had to know if she still got the forest deferral (on taxes) if she logged off the property.  First, there is not enough lumber on the deferral plot to log right now - the trees are maybe 15 years old. Second, this was not a contingency, so wtf??  She finally signed Friday, after completely pissing off the escrow officer (not a good thing, I can tell you!!). The lender had already funded the loan, so we'll close on Monday,but because the banks are closed for Columbus Day, I won't have the $$ in my pocket until Tuesday. At least there's $$... I'm very grateful for that!

The traffic control plans turned into a bigger job than I had anticipated - one job turned into 8 sheets, good for the pocket book, but really hard on the wrists.  I need to get a more ergonomic set up in the trailer to do these.  I'm meeting with the company owners, etc., on Tuesday - I've been working for them without the "Hi, welcome to the company - here's how we do things", which has been a little frustrating.  I'm looking forward to all of us being on the same page, or at least in the same book!!

There's still organizing to do, and I need to get 5 dowels for my warping reel so I can warp my loom. I hope to get that done this weekend.  It will be good to get back to weaving.

I've been putting off writing this post for about 2 months. 

I've put my house up for sale. Annie is in training and not at home, Prize went to a much better home than I could give him, given the craziness that is currently my life.  It's very weird not having livestock at home (other than poultry). With Annie in training until mid-September, I don't have to worry about her. When I pick her up, she'll be rideable, and I will be able to continue her training in dressage and driving. Kiri will be caring for the 'Tater (Who's Your Daddy), who won't be weaned until at least December, and probably later, given that mid-winter isn't a good time for that kind of stress.

I have come to the realization that I can't live where it rains 80-90 inches per year.  I have asthma, and this last year has just about killed me.  My 1984, semi-permeable mobile home is full of mold, mildew and assorted fungi - probably the reason I developed my anaphylactic mushroom allergy. I have had more lung problems in the last 2 years, than all the years before, and find myself increasingly short of breath (ok, I'm out of shape, too, but not that bad...).

I've also realized that I'm not like normal people.  I thrive on change.  Oh, I can stay put in a job for several years, but then I need to be doing something different. I've been at my current job for 6 years.  To say that I'm feeling chaffed, is putting it mildly - twitchy is a better adjective. My current job is as close to a dream job as you can get - good people, good, interesting stuff to do, and good pay.  However, it's in a location that will do me in. 

Some of my favorite jobs were temporary in nature.  I would go, clean things up, kick butt, take names - they loved me and I moved on. Life was good.  I also really enjoyed working for myself, setting my own hours, doing fun stuff in between doing my work.  I'm not all that concerned with my future - so long as I keep putting in my share, the universe has always provided what I need at the time.

So, my plan is to sell the house (mainly the land - the house isn't worth much), and move east to central Oregon.  The climate is more like Reno - I miss that way more than I thought I would.  It's has more "big sky" than where I live now. Walton is in a canyon, and while the trees and green are very nice, my eyes are feeling squished. 

By the end of summer (Sept/Oct) I will have relocated.

The hardest part right now is that I feel like I've failed as a farmer.  Anybody can have chickens...  Someday, I'll have another place and have pigs and sheep and maybe goats (along with the ponies), but for now, even the chickens are going to a new home soon (which they already have, thank goodness). It's very strange not to have hooved stock outside the back door - that's what brought me to Oregon in the first place! I wanted a place where my sheep could graze for at least part of the year, so I wouldn't have to feed so much hay. Now I have unused hay in my barn.  It won't go to waste - I'll haul it over to Correy to help feed Kiri and 'Tater. But it's like it's the end of a dream. I'm hoping it's just a suspension, and that I'll get back to it. 

The universe may have other ideas, though.  There are other things in the works, which are too nebulous to mention now.  If they solidify, I'll post about them later.

In the meantime, I'm purging stuff like mad.  I'm hoping to get down to just the bare essentials beyond bed, loom, fiber stuff, cd's and books - that's not asking too much, is it?

When I got Kiri, I was suspicious that she was pregnant (one of those intuitive flashes I get), but then while at Michelle's, she was being such a turd and her back/ovaries were sore, I decided that I was mistaken.

This is a picture from the slaughter lot where I got her:
Note the rather tightish belly line. This was in December.

This is now:

Note the downward sag of her belly.

Equine gestation is 11 months, roughly. Since I don't know when she was bred (before going to the slaughter lot, I'm pretty sure), I have no idea when she's due.  I can tell she's foaled before from the look of her udder/teats (they've been used!).

While this is exciting, it's also very worrisome.  I don't do baby horses. I don't have the time it takes to get them handle-able, and comfortable with humans.  I hadn't bargined on a two-fer!

However, when talking to a friend today about it, we came up with a name for the (very possibly impending) foal - Who's Your Daddy.  It's gender neutral, and the barn name can be anything.

Progress reports will be intermittent, but forthcoming.

Oh, and I've had 88 inches of rain in 6 months. $%(^*$_)(%^*(^

She looks so cute and innocent!


Riding a new horse is kind of like piloting an airplane for the first time. I traveled to Michelle’s house on Sunday, to take my maiden flight on Kiri. Unfortunately, I forgot my girth – fortunately, Michelle had one that worked. Since it was cotton web, and stretches, I walked her around a little before getting on, which is when this picture was taken. (I do wear a helmet when I ride…)

So, I got on, got settled, and Michelle let go of the reins. Kiri hit the eject button, and I was summarily dumped on my butt…

I’m ok. My knees are ok. It’s actually rather nice falling off a horse that’s so close to the ground. I got back on (after putting the halter on over the bridle). Michelle led us around the arena. Every time Kiri got pissy, I made her turn around. By the end of the ride, she was a little better.

As near as I guess, these contributed to her general bad mood:
• She’s suffering from the mare version of PMS, and her ovaries hurt (I was sitting rather near them).
• She didn’t like the girth (it was a little tighter than I usually do it).
• Unlikely, but possible – her teeth hurt (see below)
• Most likely – she was out of sorts being asked to DO something.

Michelle’s husband is an Equine Veterinarian. When I got Kiri, I knew that she was going to need pony orthodontia. Since Rick was home, and had his dental tools there, Kiri got a shot of pillow/blankie/night-night, and had her teeth done. She has what’s called “monkey mouth” – basically an undershot jaw, like a bulldog. Lack of care had caused one of her incisors to grow abnormally long (the rig she’s in simply holds her head up, and her mouth open – pretty slick and totally painless).
After cutting off almost ½ inch spur, and evening up her teeth, it almost looks normal.
This view shows how “off” her jaw is. The last top tooth and the last bottom tooth should be directly opposite each other.

So, we can cross off the third bullet above – no teeth excuses.

The first bullet will be solved by putting the 1” copper pipe back into the stock tank (the copper helps with mares’ cycles), and getting some Mare Magic (raspberry leaf supplement that really works…).

The second bullet will hopefully be mediated by using my girth, which is a little more elastic.

The final bullet will be good for both of us. I’m going to put her into the training surcingle, attach the drive reins, and ground drive her around the pasture. As soon as she’s convinced that stopping is not an option, we’ll be well on our way. I’ll be walking up and down hills with her (great for the muscle tone, and cardio).

I’ll also start riding Chris to get my riding muscles in shape.

I’ve now lost 8.5 lbs!!

And Chris tried to eat her...  He was quite bent out of shape that he only had 24 hours to himself as boss of the pasture.  However, after locking Kiri in the barn, and then letting her out and locking Chris in the barn, I knew that this was not a routine that I could manage for very long (like never...).  Plus, neither of them were very happy being locked up - Chris paced and wove and worked himself into a complete lather.  By Monday, they were both getting twitterpated when the other one was out of sight, so I thought I'd try putting them together. Success! After a slight bit of "I'll show you," they wandered off grazing together.  The size difference is rather comical - Chris at 17.1, Kiri at about 13 hands.

Kiri has already established her place in the herd as higher than the alpacas.  She's very quick to turn her butt to them or bare her teeth at them, and after their experiences with the big boys, they are very respectful.  I think Chris will now get all the feed he's supposed to.  She seems to have let him be boss (good call...), so I don't have to worry about her stealing his ration. After almost a week, he looks like he's actually gaining weight.

I stopped last night to put in my turkey order (15 std. bronze, 15 royal palm and 10 midget white), and was deciding what kind of replacement chickens I was going to get.  My Dark Brahmas are really lovely, and very friendly, but they haven't laid an egg since Sept.  There is no free lunch on the farm.  I have had Buff Orpingtons in the past, and my sister has had Black Australorps, and I was trying to decide between them, when the feed store owner mentioned that they had some crossbreds (buff/Australorp x) that some guy brought back because he thought they were roosters (they aren't).  I went out to look at them, and they appear to be 3-4 months old, and took them home (there are 5). 

I have a chicken/turkey tractor that I broke last year when I moved the turkeys to their bigger pen. It's made out of a 2" pvc frame with 3/4" electrical conduit "hoops" covered in chicken wire.  Because it is raining today, I covered it with a tarp.  In the dark last night, I just put some straw in, their box, and opened the lid.  This morning (in the dark), I furnished water and food - one of the girls was out of the box the other 4 were huddled in their box wondering what was going on! Of course, Lyra, the chicken terminator, was quite interested.  The plan is to repair the tractor - it broke the fitting at the corner - and start moving them around when the weather gets nicer.  Where they are now will make a nice garden-ette, particularly with their manure added to the horse poop that has been piled there in the past.

It would be nice to make a quasi-green house where the chickens are at the end of the house.  It would help keep the underside of the house warm in the winter, and give me a place to grow greens, brassicas, and roots.  I may move them before the weather clears up - I want home-grown salads...
Like Leigh, I have 5 acres.  While I would love to be self sufficient, I know that I won't ever be able to feed the large quadrapeds from my land. The birds can scrounge a lot, but they still need more nutrition than I can provide from my land.  I can, however, work towards growing all my own herbaceous food and canning, freezing and drying it for future use.

Last year, I raised 32 cornish x chickens.  I should mention that I'm a practiced procrastinator.  I arranged for them to be butchered (I'll do one or two myself, but 32?) at 10 weeks.  I forgot how fast they grow.  I had cockerels that dressed out at 10 lbs.  I sold 6, gave a couple to neighbors for being "neighborly", froze 5, and canned the rest.  It's really nice to just grab chicken off the shelf to use in cooking.  This year, I would like to do some tuna and salmon.  It would be fun to catch it too, but I don't think I can make the time to go that far, but a couple of the grrls here at work are talking about it so maybe we will!

Ok, so I’m a little late, but I can explain…

I had a wonderful time for Christmas with my cousin, Glenna (see this post). We sat around and I knit and she read, and we talked and laughed and cried, ate prime rib, drank wine and margaritas, and generally let our hair down. The time was too short. She is the perfect guest!  I also dyed some yarn for projects - some are included later in this post.

The day that she came, I had a farrier appointment (pony pedicures). It took me 20 minutes to catch Merlin after he busted out of the barn :-(  I’ve been having trouble with him for awhile, and have hesitated to mention it here – the upshot is that he’s dangerous because the human race let him down. I had decided to take him to the local livestock auction while Glenna was here (some of the source of tears).

I have $100,000 knees – I don’t want to mess them up “saving” a damaged horse. His behavior is like that of a fear bitter dog. If he’s cornered, he fights – he’s too big to fight with. He also picks on Chris, who is currently injured and lame because of some interaction (but getting better), and harasses the alpacas. Life will be much calmer for the large quadrupeds when he’s gone.

I hadn’t planned to get another equine (you can tell where this is going...).

There is a feedlot in eastern Washington that a group rescues horses bound for slaughter and rehomes them. I was cruising CL last week and found this:

She’s a 10 year old, grulla quarter pony, 13.3 hands. I called – she was still available for adoption. In their evaluation, they found her responsive to leg and rein, and very calm.

My New Year’s plan was to go to Prineville, spend the 31st with Correy, cook duck and hang out. We did that, but on New Year’s Day, she and I drove to Washington to pick up the pony. We arrived at the holding area (half-way house for feedlot rescues), to find her happily munching away on a large bale of hay with other horses. Since she was near the fence, I held my hand out with a treat. At first, she was “busy” eating, but kept looking over. Finally, she came up, took the treat, and let me scratch her – ears, neck, shoulder (beautifully sloped), pretty much anywhere. When I put the halter on her, she just stood there calmly. She leads beautifully – slack lead line, head just slightly ahead of my shoulder. She also loaded in the trailer nicely. All in all, she seems to be a very level-headed, easy-going, and very friendly.

She’s still at Correy’s, in quarantine. Being a feedlot rescue, they have been exposed to various diseases, and Correy has the ability to separate her, where I don’t. After a couple of weeks, depending on the weather, I’ll drive over to bring her home. I’m hoping to get some riding in this winter – hauling the little one will be much easier than shoe-horning Chris (once he’s sound) into the trailer! I’ve named her Kiri – her previous name was Jingles. My mom’s childhood nickname was Jingle, and somehow it just didn’t seem appropriate to call her that.

The kittens are running rampant – Chaos has slept under my bed, and in the living room on a sweater – he’s really coming around. The other two, Mayhem and Ted, are still pretty standoffish, but they come running for food. Last night, they were both in my bedroom while I was reading; Mayhem sniffing my hand, Ted just watching from around behind the dresser – progress.

Harry and Lyra are good, though Harry is fighting his flea allergy. I’m going to try some new stuff, as Frontline seems to have stopped working.

I’ve also been knitting. I used some of the yarn (see this post) that I had spun to make this cowl. It’s warm and I really like it!
Note the tassel - it's kind of my signature.  I love putting I-cord and tassels on things - this helps me get it on the same way each time.

I’m making another out of merino/silk from KnitPicks that I dyed – the Victorian Neck Cozy from Ravelry (link here). The copy of the pattern that I printed was in black and white – the yarn I dyed is a lot like the yarn in the color picture!

I’m also working on another hat, this one’s for Correy. Her maternal line is of Sami extraction (Northern Scandinavia, Lapp, with a little Alaskan native thrown in), so I’m using some of those colors and patterns in my “yurt for your head” style. It’s barely underway here, but it’s a start!
 I have resolved to increase my fitness level and eat better. It’s so cliché, but I really need to do something about my cardio-vascular fitness. To that end, I’m embarking on riding my bike (on a wind trainer) three times a week, and looking for healthier meals. I’m starting slowly – don’t want to shock my system, or anything…

So far, I’ve had almost 30 inches of rain since 11/1/10. The storm on its way this week should top that. The ground has been frozen for the last few days, giving everyone a respite from the mud.